The crowded streets of Persephone displayed wares and bodies for sale, one for too much and one for far too little. The sweat dripping down her back, her sheer face guard blowing upward from the hot air steaming from the slimy quarters below, Inara was lost in thought. Even though she was used to the normal and not so normal commerce of Persephone, her attention was divided for other reasons today. The wav she received was encrypted and she needed her shuttle communication relays to decipher it. She was worried about the point of origin on the wav though. It could be coincidence, she prayed that it was only coincidence. He could not have found her, not after all this time. The thought quickened her pace toward Serenity.

-----

“It’s true, we did take a doll shipment once. But we ain’t gonna again. It was a bit above our standards,” Mal tried to sound as pleasant as possible to the nicely dressed gentleman. His black trench coat and matching Stetson showed little dust on a planet full of the stuff. This meant distinguished in Mal’s mind and he was not about to cut future ties.

“I understand,” Evan Li smiled slightly at the captain and stepped to the side for a better view of the cargo bay. He saw crates shoved to each side and some large man smoking a cigar and sharpening a knife while enjoying the horrid air pilfering into the ship from the planet. Jayne barely noticed the inspection before he started picking the dirt from his boots with the knife. Evan strolled back to the captain with his hands clasped behind his back, “It is a nice ship. How many crew members are needed on this class?”

“As many as needed,” Mal said cryptically, inwardly eyeing the man with suspicion. He did not think the man’s interest in Serenity was on the side of genuine. “We got nine members including myself. One of them’s a bona fide companion, however, and don’t help too much with the jobs we take. Another’s a shepherd for, uh … spiritual guidance,” Mal said with only a slight pause.

Evan’s smile finally